I-T dept alleges Sonu Sood, associates evaded Rs 20 crore tax, violated FCRA
New Delhi, (PTI): The CBDT on Saturday alleged that actor Sonu Sood and his associates evaded tax of Rs 20 crore and claimed that after the Income Tax Department raided him and a linked Lucknow-based infrastructure group, it was found that he routed his "unaccounted income in the form of bogus unsecured loans from many bogus entities".
It also accused Sood of violating the Foreign Contribution Regulation Act (FCRA) while raising donations from abroad.
The department had launched searches against the 48-year-old actor and the Lucknow-based group of industries involved in the infrastructure sector on September 15 and the CBDT said the action was continuing.
"During the course of search at the premises of the actor and his associates, incriminating evidence pertaining to tax evasion has been found.
"The main modus operandi followed by the actor had been to route his unaccounted income in the form of bogus unsecured loans from many bogus entities," the Central Board of Direct Taxes (CBDT) claimed in a statement.
It added that, so far, use of 20 such entries has been found and the providers of which, on examination, have "accepted" on oath to have given "bogus" accommodation entries (transaction entries in accounts).
"They have accepted to have issued cheques in lieu of cash. There have been instances where professional receipts have been camouflaged as loans in the books of accounts for the purpose of evasion of tax," the policy-making body for the tax department said.
These bogus loans, it said, have been used for "making investments and acquiring properties."
The total amount of tax evaded unearthed so far amounts to more than Rs 20 crore, the statement and official sources said about Sood.
It also talked about his charity organisation that was established during the COVID-19 outbreak last year.
The actor shot to national prominence after he arranged free transport through rail, air and road for numerous migrant workers to reach their home states during the nationwide lockdown clamped last year to contain the spread of coronavirus pandemic.
The Delhi government, led by Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal, had also recently declared that Sood will be the brand ambassador of the Aam Aadmi Party government's 'Desh ka mentors' programme under which students will be guided in making their career choices.
The CBDT said the charity foundation set up by the actor was incorporated on July 21, 2020 and has collected donations to the tune of Rs 18.94 crore from April 1, 2021 till date.
Out of this, it said, the foundation has spent around Rs 1.9 crore for various relief works and the balance of Rs 17 crore has been found lying "unutilised" in its bank account.
It is seen, the statement alleged, that funds to the tune of Rs 2.1 crore have also been raised by the charity foundation from overseas donors on a crowdfunding platform "in violation" of FCRA regulations.
It said the actor had entered into a joint venture with the Lucknow-located infrastructure group and "invested substantial funds", and said the taxman has unearthed "incriminating" evidence pertaining to tax evasion and irregularities in the account books.
"The search has revealed that the said group is involved in bogus billing of sub-contracting expenses and siphoning off of funds. Evidence of such bogus contracts found so far are to the tune of over Rs 65 crore," it said.
Evidence of unaccounted cash expenses, unaccounted sale of scrap and digital data evidencing unaccounted cash transactions has also been found.
The infra group "has entered into dubious circular transaction to the tune of Rs 175 crore with an infrastructure company based in Jaipur".
"Further investigations are being carried out to establish the full extent of tax evasion," it said.
The CBDT said Rs 1.8 crore cash has been seized during the raids and 11 lockers have been placed under "prohibitory orders".
A total of 28 premises in Mumbai, Lucknow, Kanpur, Jaipur, Delhi, and Gurgaon are being covered as part of the search operation.
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Air India resorts to cost-cutting ways amid 'tough times'; layoffs not anticipated
New Delhi/Mumbai (PTI): Hit hard by Pakistan airspace closure and Iran war, Air India has resorted to cost-cutting measures, including holding back annual increments for staff and asking them to cut discretionary spending as well as non-critical expenditures, warning of "tough times".
On Friday, Air India Chief Executive Officer & Managing Director (CEO & MD) Campbell Wilson told the staff it is going to be a "very, very difficult year" if things don't improve on the Middle East front.
A day after the loss-making airline's board discussed various cost-saving steps, Wilson, along with Chief Financial Officer (CFO) Sanjay Sharma and Chief Human Resources Officer (CHRO) Ravindra Kumar GP, addressed the employees during a townhall on Friday where the emphasis on the need to keep a close watch on costs.
With higher jet fuel prices due to the West Asia conflict and airspace curbs, the loss-making airline's expenses have spiralled in recent times and against this backdrop, Sharma also told staffers that FY26 has seen a softening in revenue amid heightened external uncertainties.
Calling for a relentless focus on costs in these tough times, Wilson urged employees to suspend discretionary spending, renegotiate rates where feasible, and defer non-critical expenditures.
"There must be a laser-sharp focus on eliminating wastage and leakages," he said.
Stressing the need to tighten the belt for a while, Wilson sounded optimistic that travel demand would rebound and the industry would continue on its upward path.
CHRO Ravindra Kumar told staff that the airline will proceed with variable pay for the last financial year and continue with planned promotions while noting that annual increments will be deferred by at least one quarter.
"We don't anticipate layoffs," he said.
At the airline's board meeting on Thursday, various cost-saving steps, including likely furloughs, were discussed. The Tata Group-owned airline has around 24,000 employees.
Generally, furlough refers to sending staff on unpaid leaves by companies during a tough financial situation.
During the townhall, CFO Sanjay Sharma said while strong revenue growth and fleet expansion drove financial momentum through FY25, FY26 has seen a softening in revenue amid heightened external uncertainties.
Air India has seen around 40 per cent CAGR (Compounded Annual Growth Rate) in revenue between 2022 and 2025, he added.
The airline was acquired by the Tata Group from the government in January 2022.
The Air India CEO mentioned the external challenges being facing the aviation industry as a whole, including the continued closure of Pakistan airspace that is expected to persist for the foreseeable future and geopolitical conflicts leading to disruptions and airspace closures across West Asia.
Wilson, who is set to step down later this year, also flagged a sharp depreciation of the rupee and a 2.5-3 times increase in jet fuel prices, and added that these factors have adversely affected travel sentiment and consumer confidence, as per the sources.
If the Strait of Hormuz opens, oil prices fall and consumer as well as business confidence come back, there is a decent chance of a solid recovery, Wilson said, adding that unless those circumstances happen, it was going to be "a very, very difficult year".
"I feel somewhat responsible that we ended up with probably the biggest surprise of the year in the external environment which was a full-scale war in our neighbouring region in the Gulf. That has had a huge impact on airspace," he said.
For Air India, Wilson said the situation is compounded by the fact that the airline cannot fly over the neighbouring country and has to take a much longer routing for any west-bound destination.
"Every airline is reporting that they are under some sort of financial pressure as a result of higher fuel prices and economic uncertainty. So, it is unfortunately not a great environment to be running an airline," the Air India CEO said.
The Air India Group -- Air India and Air India Express -- is projected to have incurred more than Rs 22,000 crore loss in the financial year ended March 2026.
At the townhall, Wilson also highlighted various initiatives, including completion of the retrofit of its legacy narrow-body aircraft and rapid network optimisation to redeploy capacity more efficiently.
